Extractor mechanism for can end driers



Dec. 31, 1935. f Wl E BURNS 2,025,935

EXTRACTOR MECHANISM FOR CAN END DRIERS Filed July 16, 1954 5Sheets-Sheet l /zk BY 1 r f l Y' ATTORNEY Dec. 31, 1,935. w. E. BURNS2,025,935

EXTRACTOR MECHANISM FOR CAN END DRIERS Filed Julyv 16, 19345-Shee'bS-Sheet 2 INVENTOR fv ci? Dec. 31, 1935. W. E, BURNS 2,025,935

EXTRACTOR MECHANISM FOR CAN END DRIERS Filed July 16, 1954 3S'xeetS-Sheet, 5

A TORNEY Patented Dec. 3l, 1935 UNrre EXTRACTOR llEChANSM FOR. CAN ENDDREES/S Wilford E. Burns, Burlingame, Calif., assigner to M. J. E.Company, a corporation of Delaware Application July 16, 1934, Serial No.735.3215

6 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in can end drying machines and ithas reference more particularly to driers of that type wherein can ends,with a sealing compound freshly applied to their flanges, are arranged,slightly spaced, in stacks and the stacks are supported vertically by arotating carrier and, while being rotate-d with the carrier, are causedto be progressively advanced upwardly through a drying chamber and thedried ends to be displaced from the upper ends of the stacks as theyemerge from the chamber, and delivered into a chute through which theypass to a place for packaging or use.

Explanatory to the present invention it will here be stated thatheretofore it has been the practice in use of machines of the abovetype, to cause the can ends to be displaced from the upper ends of theupwardly moving and rotating stacks by coming into direct contact with amember fixed to a stationary or relatively stationary part of themachine and thus to be laterally displaced from the stack and directedinto the delivery chute. Such a method and means of displacement isillustrated and described in U. S. Patent #1,662,371 issued on March 13,1928 to Nelson Troyer et al. It has been found necessary however, whenthe ends are deep drawn, to effect a positive separation of each endfrom the one that is next lower on the stack, thus to avoid jams orother difficulties that are possible by 'reason of lateral ejectionwithout first unnesting the ends.

In View of the above it has been the principal object of the presentinvention to provide means associated with the respective stackelevating means and operable in synchronism with the delivery of canends thereto, whereby the dried ends will be positively and individuallylifted from the upper ends of the stacks as they reach the deliverypoint clear and free of the next lower ends and then ejected laterallyinto the delivery chute.

More specifically stated, it is the object of the invention to provide amechanism associated with each stack including a suction pad that isrevoluble with the unit assembly and has an actuating means whereby itis operated in timing with rotation of the unit, for moving the padagainst the top of the stack and then lifting it, thereby to hold bysuction and raise the uppermost end clear and free from the stack to aposition at which it will, incident to rotation of the assembly, bebrought into contact with a stripper member which detaches it from thecup and ejects it Vinto the delivery chute.

Another object of the invention is to provide simple and effective meansfor actuating the several suction pads in synchronism with rotation ofthe assembly,

Still further objects reside in the details of 5 construction andcombination of parts embodied in the invention and in their mode ofoperation, as will hereinafter be fully described.

In accomplishing these and other objects, I have provided the improveddetails of construcl tion, `the preferred forms of which are illustratedin the accompanying drawings, wherein- Fig. l is a front elevation of amechanism embodying the present invention as applied to the upper endportion of a can end drier. l

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the same, taken in a vertical planethrough the axial line of the drier.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line 3 3 in Fig. 2. 20 Fig.e is a horizontal section taken on the line in Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a sectional detail taken on line 5 5 in Fig. 3.

Referring more in detail to the drawings- In its general form the typeof drier with which the present mechanism is associated is that of theTroyer patent before mentioned and comprises an upright, cylindricalchamber, or drum,

l into which the circular can ends 2 are delivered 30 for drying. Toexpedite the drying operation, the chamber may be interiorly heated byheating means therein or 'by heated air discharged thereinto. The canends 2 are successively delivered, with a sealing compound freshlyapplied to their peripheral flanges, into the drying chamber at itslower end and are there taken up between the lower ends of parallel,vertical elevating screws 3 rotated about their own axes in synchronismwith the rate of delivery of can ends 40 thereto so that the threads ofadjacent screws will supportingly engage the can ends and cause them tobe progressively elevated through the drying chamber. Preferably theseveral screws would be parallel and arranged in equal spacing and atequal radial distances from a central vertical axis about which theseveral screws bodily rotate. Thus, provision is made for supportingstacks of can ends about the central axis and between each two adjacentscrews as is seen in Fig. 3.

In the present illustration, I have not shown the drying chamber indetail nor have I illustrated the means for supporting the severalscrews and for causing them to rotate on their 55 axes while theassembly is rotated on-its axis. I have, however, illustrated the upperend portion of the chamber and they means whereby the screws arerotatably mounted and held in proper spacing relative to each other andto the chamber wall; it being understood that outside of what is hereinshown the machine may be like that of the patent above-mentioned.

As seen best in Fig. 2, the upper end of the cylindrical drying chamberl is equipped with a ring like collar to give it strength and rigidity.Erected on this collar in regular spacing are vertical posts 5 for thesupport of mechanism presently described, and these posts have rollers Imounted thereon within which a circular frame 8, keyed coaxially on thecentral or axial driving shaft 9 of the machine, is located.

The upper ends of the several screws 3 have portions 3a of reduceddiameter revolubly contained in sockets Sa in the frame 8, as seen inFig. 5, thus to retain the screws in proper spac ing. Also, the frame 8,as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 has circular openings I!) therethrough for theupward travel of the stacks of can ends advanced upwardly between therotating screws.

Itis to be explained also that the several screws are revolublysupported at their lower ends in a base plate that is xed to andrevolved by the shaft 9. Also, that means is provided whereby for eachrotation of the mechanism bodily about the shaft 9, the screws arecaused to rotate once on their own axes. Thus, when a can end isdelivered to the lower end of a stack between the lower ends of adjacentscrews, it will be picked up by the threads of these two screws andwhile the shafts are carried about the central axis of the unit, theywill rotate about their own axes and thus elevate the can end a distanceequal to the pitch of the threads and thus clear the space for entranceof the next can end fed to the screws.

The axial or driving shaft S of the assembly has an extension 9a ofreduced diameter at its upper end on which a casting or head I I ismounted to be rotated by the shaft. This head II comprises sets ofvertically alined bearings lla-I Ib in which tubular shafts I2 arereciprocally contained. These shafts I2 are equal in number to thenumber of stacks of can ends and are coaxially in alinement with thestacks, and each shaft is equipped at its lower end with a suction v padI3 adapted to be brought flatly against the top of the stack of can endswith which it is alined.

The upper end of each of the tubular shafts I2 is connected through themediacy of a flexible tube I5 with an opening I6 in a manifold I1 which,in turn is connected by a pipe I8 with a source of vacuum. The manifoldI'i is formed in the upper end of a post threaded onto the upper end ofshaft Sa and the pipe I8 has a packed, rotatable connection as at 2|with the manifold and is coaxial of the shaft 9a and post so that thelatter parts may freely rotate relative thereto.

As will be observed in Figs. l and 2, the posts 6 mount a horizontal,ring like frame 24 that encircles the lower end portions of the severalshafts I2 and this ring is formed on its upper side concentrically aboutthe shaft 8a with a circular cam flange 25 which has a gradually risingsurface 25a from one point to a point diametrically opposite, as seen inFig. 2, and then for a part of the circle has a horizontal surface 25h,as seen in Fig. 1, and then a downwardly inclined surface as at 25eleading to the lower point of the cam.

Fixed on each of the tubular shafts I2 between the bearings IIa-IIb is ablock 26 having a spindle portion 27 mounting a cam roller 28. Theseveral cam rollers are arranged to follow upon the cam ring 25as themechanism is rotated by shaft 9. Thus, with each rotation, each shaft I2will be reciprocally actuated in a manner to cause its suction pad to belowered against the stack of can ends beneath it, then to be raised byreason of suction in the pad, to lift the top end 2 from the stacks asseen at the left side in Fig. 2. This suction is maintained at all timesby reason of the connection with the source of vacuum through tubes I5and pipe I 8.

At the upper end of each shaft I2 a block 30 is fixed and these blocksrigidly mount standards 3i with inwardly and downwardly turned upperends Sia to which coiled springs 32 are attached and placed undertension to pull downwardly thus to hold the cam rollers 28 firmlyagainst the cam 25 as the mechanism rotates about its axis. The lowerends of the springs S2 are attached to the upper ends of rods 33 mountedvertically in thc head casting It) and which serve as guides for theblocks 26 in their vertical movement.

Vertical rods 35 are mounted abovethe cam ring 2d as extensions of -theposts 5, and these rods support a horizontal frame 3S at their uppcrends overlying the mechanism and serving as a support in which thesuction pipe I8 is fixed and secured against rotation. incident to rontation of the assembly within the machine, the can ends that are liftedfrom the upper ends of their respective stacks are brought successivelyinto contact with a stripper arm 3S that is xed to a block 3s attachedto the under side of frame disk 24. This arm 38 extends horizontallyinto the line of travel of the lifted can ends in positic-n that theends on contact therewith will be displaced thereby from their suctionpads, but the pads pass over the a`rrn. Centrifugal force then carriesthe ends, when thus displaced, into a delivery chute di? having itsupper end located adjacent the point of displacement and down which theends slide to a point of use or to a container for packaging,

n order that the can ends may not be delivered flatly upon the bottom ofthe chute and their inertia thuschecked to an extent which might causethem' to stop on the chute and cause a piling up of ends, a wire 4I isstretched horizontally across the top of the rotating assembly at aposition below the can end at its time of release from the suction padand also so located that the ends on falling on the wire will be tilteddownwardly and forwardly and will fall into the chute on their forwardedge and thus not be retarded in their delivery to any material extent.

The wire as seen in Fig. 3 is attached at its ends to a bracket 42 on apost 6 and to the inner end of arm 38.

With the parts so constructed and assembled, it is quite readilyapparent that, incident to rotation of the assembly about the centralaxis and the feeding of can ends-to the stack elevating screws, the canends will be delivered in stacks into the vertical openings II of theend frame 8, and that, as the stacks are elevated to approximately thelevel of the upper ends of these openings, the uppermost end in eachstack will, on each rotation of the assembly, be lifted off by itscorresponding suction pad; the pad being actuated synchronously withrotation of the machine by the reciprocal action imparted to the tubularshafts I2 by the cam rollers 2B traveling along the cam 25. Contact ofthe can ends, whiie held in elevated position, with the stripper arm 38causes them to be detached from their pads and discharged, falling rston the wire al and thereby tilted so that they fall in the chute ontheir forward edge, thus not to materially retard their force ofdelivery.

The present device lifts the ends from nested relation prior to lateralejection and aiords a positive means of removing the ends from theirstacks, one at a time, and thus prevents jams in the machine and allpossibility of damage to the ends incident to removal.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new therein anddesire to secure by Letters Patent is- 1. The combination with a machineincluding means whereby a stack of can ends may be continuously andprogressively advanced to a point of delivery, of a suction pad, a padsupport reciprocally operable to actuate the pad against and away fromthe stack thereby on each successive movement away from the stack todisplace the uppermost can end therefrom, a delivery chute and meansarranged to engage the can ends when lifted by the pad, to effect theirdisplacement from the pad into the delivery chute.

2. The combination with a machine including a means whereby a stack ofcan ends is continuously and progressively elevated while the stack isrotating about an axis parallel thereto, of a suction pad, a support forthe pad alined with the stack above its upper end, means forreciprocally actuating the support to cause said pad to move against,then upwardly from the stack, thereby on each upward movement to elevatethe uppermost can end from the stack, and a relatively stationary memberagainst which the ends, when lifted, are caused to engage thereby to bedisplaced for delivery from the machine.

3. The combination with a machine including a rotating carrier whereby astack of can ends is progressively elevated to a point of dischargewhile rotating with the stack about the said axis,

means for reciprocally actuating the support to cause the pad to bemoved against and then upwardly from the stack and thereby to lift theuppermost end from the stack with each upward movement, a deliverychute, and a stripper member against which the can ends while liftedwill 5 engage for displacement from the pad into the chute. Y

4. The combination with a rotating carrier whereby a stack of can endsis rotated about an axis parallel thereto and progressively elevated toa discharge level while being rotated, of a suction pad, a reciprocallymovable support for the pad, a cam ring coaxial of the axis of rotationo-f the carrier, a cam follower on the reciprocally movable supportengaging the cam for actuating the support to move the pad against andaway from the stack and thereby with each upward movement to lift offthe uppermost end of the stack, a delivery chute and a stripper locatedin4 position to engage with the lifted ends thereby to displace themfrom the pad into the delivery chute.

5. The combination with a machine including a carrier rotatable about avertical axis and including means for supporting a plurality of stacksof can ends for rotation about said axis and whereby said stacks areprogressively elevated as they are rotated to a discharge level, of aframe supported above and rotating with said carrier, suction padsupports alined witheach of the stacks and vertically reciprocable inthe said frame, a suction pad in each support and movable therebyagainst and upwardly from the stack and thereby with each upwardmovement to lift a can end from the stack, a cam ring concentric of theaxis of ro- '35 tation, a cam follower for each pad support operablealong the cam as the frame rotates, to

, reciprocally actuate the supports, a delivery chute and a stripperwire drawn across the path of travel of the lifted can ends to displacethem from 40

